Stepping Stones
by anim8or
Summary: As each one of the Miracles begin their decline, Nijimura takes it upon himself to help them realize how young they still are. (Set during the Teiko Arc) ( R&R c: )
1. Kuroko

Nijimura often wondered how he ended up at Teiko with the six little monsters that everyone labled "Miracles."

He also wondered how he managed to put up with each of them. After all, they were just kids in middle school, and they got on his nerves quite a bit.

But... by that same logic, wasn't he a child, too?

He certainly didn't feel like it. With his father's declining health, being head of the basketball team, relenquishing his title, and letting these younger boys take over...

Well, it made him feel impossibly old.

"Nijimura-san, why aren't you on the court yet?"

The soft question from behind him made him jump just a bit. He, like many other people on Teiko's team, couldn't quite get used to Kuroko's lack of presence.

Forcing down his surprise, Nijimura turned his head to face the little blue-haired boy, and offered him a small smile. "I'm just thinking some things over, Kuroko-kun." He patted the bench beside him, signalling that the Shadow could sit beside him if he wished. "I'm watching the others, too. Care to join me?"

Kuroko hesitated just slightly before stepping over the bench and sitting beside his upperclassman, resting his elbows on his knees.

After a few moments of silence - apart from the squeaking basketball shoes and swishes of the net - Nijimura glanced over at the second-year once more. "What are you thinking about, kiddo?" From what he'd seen before, Kuroko's mind was a complex labyrinth of thoughts and emotions, even though his face showed none of his inner turmoil.

"Nothing."

Nijimura felt a smile coming on. "You can't be thinking about nothing, or else you'd be a brainless little starfish. Are you a starfish, Kuroko-kun?"

Kuroko's lips quirked up a bit at the corners, and he glanced at his senpai from the corner of his eye. "Maybe Nijimura-san is the brainless little starfish."

Nijimura promptly gave the boy a light swat to the back of his head, eliciting a laugh from the Shadow. "No, you're definitely the starfish, kid. Don't argue with your seniors," he warned when he saw Kuroko move to speak.

Things went quiet once more, until Kuroko apparently decided that he wanted to say something. "What were you thinking about, Nijimura-san?" When he got no immediate response, he continued, "Your father?"

"Partly," Nijimura relented, reaching out to ruffle the boy's pale blue hair. "But I was also thinking about you guys. I'm concerned about you and the others - Aomine's started acting so strange lately, and Murasakibara's harder to handle than usual. Even Akashi's changing."

Kuroko bowed his head in affirmation, and looked over at the Technicolored players on the court. "I don't know what's going on, really." A wave of depression filled his sky blue eyes as he glanced at his hands. "I'm afraid that they're not having fun anymore. That playing basketball is a chore. Aomine's already said that no one could beat him. I know I need to do something, but don't know what I _can_ do... I feel like I'm responsible. Like I've played a part in changing them..."

Nijimura was surprised at just how sad Kuroko sounded. Like it was his fault or something. He was blaming himself for something entirely out of his control.

Nijimura knew what that felt like. After what felt like an eternity of watching his father get worse and worse, he'd begun blaming himself for the very disease that was taking his parent's life. He'd spent so many hours wracking his brain for what he could do differently, what he'd done wrong. Every single time he'd helped his father do something that required movement, and his father would flinch in pain, it was automatically Nijimura's fault.

At least, that's how it was in his mind.

And after so long of relentlessly berating himself with his thoughts and putting so much unnecessary weight on his own shoulders, it felt as though he was suffocating every moment of every day. The cruel things he would say to himself never ceased. The pressure never ended.

There was no helping it.

He'd already grown up far too fast...

...But it didn't have to be that way for these kids.

"There's no need for you to think that way." Nijimura surprised himself with how strong his voice came out. He glanced over at the Shadow to make sure he was paying attention, and smiled softly when he saw Kuroko's eyes trained on his face. Seeking, perhaps, for the very reassurance that Nijimura was offering. "You're not responsible for any of them, Kuroko. Don't worry about things that you have no control over, okay?" He paused to let the words sink in, and saw the blue-haired boy's eyes widen a fraction of an inch. Then, he continued, "You can't change them. You can just change you."

For added emphasis, Nijimura reached out and lightly prodded Kuroko's chest with his index finger. And for a moment or two, Kuroko just sat there, his eyes fixated on the floor beneath his blue-and-white basketball shoes. Nijimura could practically see the gears in his mind turning.

Finally, Kuroko spoke. "That's very wise, Nijimura-san. Thank you."

Nijimura smiled and reached out to tousle his already-messy blue hair - he clearly hadn't gotten all of the bedhead out of it that day. "Don't thank me. Just think about it." He stood, stretched his back, and looked back down at the boy. "I'll try and make time to talk to the others at some point this week. That sound good?"

Kuroko nodded and got to his feet as well. "I would appreciate that very much. But, Nijimura-san..."

"Hm? What?"

"Don't worry about things you can't control."

Nijimura paused for a heartbeat to process what the boy had said, and by the time he'd connected that Kuroko had been referencing his father, the Shadow was already on the court with the others.

With a sigh, the black-haired young man turned and headed over to the ball bin to choose his own basketball. While, no, he wasn't a starter anymore, he still needed his practice. He couldn't let the second-years show him up, after all.

As he released a well-aimed three-pointer into the air, Nijimura thought about each of the boys in the Generation of Miracles, and how in danger they were. If things kept going in the direction they were heading - the selfishness, the laziness, the cockiness, - then they were setting themselves up for failure.

While, like Kuroko, Nijimura knew that he couldn't change them, he could at least show them how young they still were. How much time they still had to enjoy life. How they didn't have to grow up just yet.

And maybe, just maybe, Nijimura could learn a thing or two himself.

* * *

 **I'm really not sure where this idea came from. I do know, though, that I can sympathize with Nijimura. Having a sick parent is the absolute worst thing. My mother's been ill since I was eight - ten whole years, now. No, she isn't dying, but there were times when we thought she was. It's emotionally scarring, and terrifying. I wouldn't wish that on anyone.**

 **So, this little fic is going to be about six/seven chapters long. Just a chapter for each of the Miracles, and then an epilogue chapter. Yes, each chapter will be about Nijimura's interactions with a different GoM member. c: Kuroko was just the beginning.**

 **Also, I don't know how long the chapters will be. Some may be monstrously long. Some may be short. But I think this chapter will be the shortest, at 1,196 words.**

 **Yeah, I realize that I should probably be updating my SYOCs. I know. But I'm really stressed right now, and writing KnB fics is really helping me feel a little better. I guess I feel less pressure with them.**

 **Anyhow, God bless you! Have a great, great, great day.**

 **anim8or**


	2. Aomine

The day after his conversation with Kuroko, Nijimura managed to find some time to spend alone with Aomine. It was just after school, and the dark teen was trying to sneak out the back - probably to skip practice yet again.

Nijimura supposed that was partly his fault, for not enforcing the rules a bit better and keeping the boys in line - not that he had any real authority left, anyway, after Akashi became the captain. Still, he felt such a big responsibility for them. What kind of senpai would he be if he didn't?

That was the thought that drove him to catching up to Aomine and getting in between him and the door.

"Nijimura-san," Aomine said in exasperation, his navy eyes flicking up to meet his senior's gaze. "What are you doing?"

Nijimura offered the bluenet the best smile he could muster, although he was already beginning to get irritated with the hot-tempered teen. Probably because he was hot-tempered himself. "Just checking to see where one of my favorite kouhai was going."

Aomine arched one eyebrow and tilted his chin up to look down his nose at the black-haired former captain. "Why would you care? I thought I was allowed to skip practice if I wanted."

"I want to go, too," Nijimura informed him, putting one hand on his hip. "I feel like I haven't spent much time talking to you lately."

"That's probably because I haven't been talking to any of you guys," the blue-haired young man scoffed and made an attempt to pass Nijimura so he could leave.

That wasn't going to fly. Twisting and planting his foot on top of one of Aomine's, Nijimura succeeded in keeping him from moving. "Well, you're about to start," he said through gritted teeth, and Aomine cringed as the pressure on his foot increased. "Now. Where are _we_ going?"

Aomine glared fiercely up at his senpai, his hands clenched into fists. "I was planning on getting something to eat and then going to that new park they're building on the west side of town after," he relented, and Nijimura released his foot with a grin.

"That sounds like fun. Let's go."

And so, Nijimura successfully weaseled his way into Aomine's "alone time" trip.

It was so _boring_ at first, too. Aomine blatantly refused to speak, even over their early dinner at a little Maji Burger joint down the road.

"So, Aomine," Nijimura started as the two began their walk to the park the blue-haired boy had been talking about, "what's been bothering you so much lately?"

At first, he didn't think that the teen was going to respond, because he didn't even look at him as his sneakered feet padded down the sidewalk. After some time passed, though, Aomine had clearly thought it through enough. "I don't really want to talk about it, Nijimura-san. That's okay, right?"

Nijimura desperately wanted to argue - to push and prod until he was told precisely what he wanted to hear - but he didn't think that would be helpful. Didn't kids like Aomine need support and freedom? Or was it rules and regulations? He couldn't remember. In fact, he was beginning to question why he thought it'd be a good idea to do this in the first place. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"Thanks," the younger teen replied gruffly, putting his hands in his pockets and kicking a small stone as he walked, his eyes downcast. "Mind telling me why you wanted to come with me so bad?"

Nijimura smiled slightly and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't really want to talk about it, Aomine. That's okay, right?" he mimicked, arching one eyebrow.

Aomine gave him a dull look. "You're annoying. You know that?"

"Takes one to know one," Nijimura muttered in return, narrowing his eyes at the younger teen. Man. He should've picked one of the easier-going Miracles to start with - not that any of them were really "easygoing" to begin with. Maybe Kise or Murasakibara would've been better to start with, though. Aomine was a toughie.

The two lapsed into silence again, with Aomine leading the way and Nijimura following. He wondered for a moment what kind of park they were going to - he'd never been to one around this part of town, and besides. It was a long way to walk for a simple trip to the park.

"Aomine," Nijimura said after a while, tilting his head a bit. "What kind of park are we going to?"

He didn't miss the small smirk that broke out on the kid's face. "Just a normal kind, I guess. It's got a... a jungle gym and some trees. It's a little hard to get to, though."

Nijimura wrinkled his nose. "I can see that. We've been walking for thirty minutes at least."

"Don't whine so much. We're here anyway," Aomine stated, approaching a tall chain-link fence near some shady-looking apartment complexes.

"We are?"

"Yup." Aomine reached his hands up and clenched them in between the links in the fence, and proceeded to hoist himself up. He reached the top before looking down at Nijimura incredulously. "You coming or what?"

Nijimura hesitated greatly before replying, "Where's the gate?" He didn't particularly like where this was going.

Aomine just laughed and reached his hand down. "Come on - I'll help you up if you want."

The raven-haired young man's pride won over and refused to be showed up. He stuck his nose up a bit and shook his head. "I can get up by myself, thanks."

"If you're sure," Aomine responded and hopped down onto the other side of the fence, landing on his feet.

Getting up and down the fence was so much easier said than done. Nijimura almost lost his balance multiple times, and wondered how on earth Aomine made it look so simple. He managed to get to the top without incident, but when he tried to get down, he ended up falling and landing directly on his butt.

Glancing up at the blue-haired teen, Nijimura could tell he was biting back laughter. "Shut up," he muttered, getting to his feet and brushing himself off. "Why do you even come to this place anyway? It's a dump," he remarked as he finally started to look around. It was muddy all around them, and a half-constructed playground and jungle gym sat in one corner. A couple of dead trees stood here and there, and there was some construction equipment scattered about.

"I come here when I want to think. It's quiet and nobody bothers me." Aomine shrugged his shoulders. "They're still building on it."

Nijimura frowned and leaned back on the fence. "I doubt it's open to the public. We're probably trespassing."

"We are," Aomine said matter-of-factly as he started off toward the jungle gym.

"So you just go wherever you want?" Nijimura asked, mostly to himself, and shook his head before following the tan teen. "You wanted to think today?" he asked, a bit louder.

Aomine nodded once before climbing on top of the half-constructed jungle gym, splaying out on top of it and pillowing his head in his hands. As Nijimura caught up, his narrowed gaze averted toward the sky. "You can think here, too. If you want."

Nijimura was thankful for the offer, and tested the support of the hunk of metal before clambering up beside the other teen and attempting to get comfortable as well. He wasn't sure how Aomine could nap on any surface, but it further proved Nijimura's suspicion that the boy was part cat or something.

"You asked earlier what I was thinking about," the blue-haired young man said, still not making any eye-contact with his senpai. "Do you really want to know, or did the coach put you up to this?"

Nijimura arched an eyebrow and pursed his lips. "What do you mean? Of course I want to know. I've been worried about you for a while."

It may have just been his imagination, but he thought Aomine's eyes widened just a fraction. Then, they noticeably softened. "That's nice of you, Nijimura-san."

"I didn't do it to be nice, idiot," Nijimura huffed, reaching out to swat the kid's forehead. "I worry because I care."

Aomine chuckled a bit and shook his head, shooing his senpai's hand away. "I've just been feeling a little off lately, I guess," he admitted, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "Basketball isn't any fun anymore."

"Why's that?" Nijimura asked, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion and sending the younger teen a concerned look. "You used to love it."

"I know," Aomine groaned, putting one hand over his eyes. "I don't really understand it. It's just... it's..." he murmured, his voice cracking softly. He sounded like he was about to cry.

Nijimura smiled gently and shook his head. "Maybe it's not so much that you don't enjoy basketball, but that you don't enjoy _winning_ anymore."

The blue-haired boy shot him a look out of the corner of his eye, surprised and impressed. "I guess you're pretty smart, Nijimura-san," he replied, and the former captain growled.

"Of course I am! Moron," he muttered, crossing his arms over his chest and glancing away. "Look, Aomine." He sighed and glanced back over at the tan teen. "You can always come talk to me about stuff, if you want. You don't have to be on your own. You know that, right?"

Aomine nodded his head and offered the older teen a small smile. "I know. Thanks, Nijimura-san."

"Don't get sappy!" Nijimura grumbled and made a move to shove the power forward, but instead ended up slipping and causing the two of them to fall through a large gap in the half-finished jungle gym. They both let out less-than-manly yelps - or squeals - and splashed into the mud below.

Aomine regained his full senses first, and sat up. He glared viciously at his senpai. "I take it back. You're not smart."

"You're one to talk!" Nijimura snapped, rubbing his aching head and sitting as well. And, without thinking, the raven-haired boy scooped up a handful of sticky mud and flung it directly at Aomine's face. It met its mark, splattering and sticking to the kid's nose and across his forehead.

Aomine looked at him with wide eyes, mud dripping down his cheeks. He brought a hand up to his face to wipe some off and stared at it, as if he was unable to comprehend what had just happened. But when he did, he reacted immediately.

Nijimura had mud smeared across the right side of his face before he knew what was going on.

For a few moments, they just stared at each other, round-eyed and muddy-faced, before they both burst out into a laughing fit.

"You're insane," Aomine wheezed when he calmed down enough to speak. "What kind of senpai throws mud on their kouhai's face?"

"What kind of kouhai does it back?" Nijimura countered, shaking his head from side to side. He groaned. "Ugh. I'm gonna be so sore tomorrow - first the fence, then the jungle gym. I'd better not fall again tonight."

Aomine grinned. "Maybe you should let me help you up and down the fence next time."

Nijimura just glared at him, but before he could respond, he heard a loud, deep voice call from the other side of he field;

"Hey! What do you kids think you're doing over there?!"

"Crap," Aomine stated simply before getting to his feet and bolting for the fence furthest away from the man who'd been calling for them. "Run, Nijimura-san!"

Nijimura didn't need to be told twice. Scrambling up, he followed his underclassman and this time let Aomine help him with the fence. When he spared a look behind him, he saw that there was not one, but two grown men after them. Thankfully, they looked a bit pudgy, but they were still fast. They were almost at the fence when he and Aomine got down and started sprinting down the sidewalk.

His heart was pounding and his lungs felt like they were going to explode, but upon hearing Aomine crow with laughter, Nijimura realized something quite important.

For the first time in a very, very long time... he was actually having _fun_.

* * *

 **I hope you all enjoyed the new chapter! If you liked it, please leave a review c:**

 **Also, I just started on a Kuroko no Basuke and Attack on Titan crossover, if you wanted to check that one out too.**

 **God bless you all! I hope you have a wonderful day,**

 **anim8or**


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